Autodesk Catch: Make a 3D print of anything

This site may earn affiliate commissions from the links on this page. Terms of use.

3D printing — the process of making actual objects using printed or etched layers — has been coming of age for several years, mostly in the form of high-end commercial devices that allow design firms like IDEO to create prototypes for clients. More recently, less expensive model making tools like the DIY MakerBot have come on the scene, allowing schools to equip labs with a limited form of 3D capability. Autodesk helped unleash this wave of creativity with its innovative 123D application earlier this year. With 123D users can design models — or download existing models from Autodesk’s library — and then either print them on templates or have them created on a 3D printer by Autodesk.

The first 123D product, while very powerful, requires users to learn a CAD tool to design their model, limiting the audience to serious hobbyists with plenty of time to learn how to use the software for model creation. Now, Autodesk has brought 3D printing to the rest of us, with 123D Make and 123D Catch. Together, the two applications allow you to create, preview, and build a 3D model of anything you can walk around and photograph.

123D Catch handles the model creation part of the process — it’s a productized version of Autodesk’s Project Photofly. First you capture lots of images of the object you are planning to model — the more the better. Ideally you’ll take pictures from all different perspectives, by walking around the object and changing position from high to low as well. For those familiar with using Microsoft’s Photosynth to create a walk-around image of an object, the process should be quite familiar. Once you’ve captured plenty of images, you upload them to Autodesk’s servers where a 3D model, in Autodesk’s 3DP format, is constructed. You’ll get an email when your model is ready to view, an estimated 10 to 15 minutes later.

Of course, in addition to viewing your model to get a 3D “walkaround,” it can be printed out in 3D. Autodesk provides an online printing service through partner Ponoko or, if you are lucky enough to live in the Bay Area, the TechShop offers members access to a variety of 3D printering and cutting devices. 123D Make comes in handy for this step, helping you visualize the final product while you adjust the specifics of how you plan to print it — using more, thinner layers of cardboard will yield a smoother model, for example.

Unfortunately, due to their differing histories, 123D Make and 123D Catch are available on different platforms initially, with Catch only running on Windows and Make only running on Mac. Autodesk is obviously working to address that issue, and also plans mobile and cloud versions of both applications, but the odd platform compatibility situation will make the pair of applications a little tricky to use for the time being. So now you have no excuse not to have your very own version of that priceless sculpture or historic icon you’ve always envied. Time to get started!